Shadows of Family
by WeepingAngelX
Summary: My name Joshua Kilian by day, Heretic by night. I'm the adopted son of Dinah Lance, and protege of Black Canary, the very first protege. After I finished an undercover mission in London, I returned to find my fellow proteges had formed a team of their own, and they want me to be the Team Leader? Well, how can I say no to that? Season 1 of YJ. Artemis X OC. T for sexual references.
1. Schooled by a Heretic

**Star City - August 3** **rd** **\- 12:00 EDT**

"Josh, you have to wake up." My adoptive mother said to me as she shook me in my bed. I groaned and turned away from her.  
"Josh, wake up." She instructed sternly. I groaned again and pulled the blanket over my head.  
"Not a morning person. You know this…" I mumbled groggily. I heard her let out a sigh.  
"It's not morning; it's already noon." She deadpanned.  
"You're the one who kept me up till 3am beating up that gang." I muttered back.  
"Don't give me that Young Man." She said with a little frustration. I groaned as she pulled the blanket off of me.  
"Dinah…" I whined as I sat up, looking at her with blurry blue eyes. She was giving the Mom look.  
"Ok, Ok, I'm up!" I quickly said defensively. She rolled her eyes and turned away to leave the room.  
"Shower, shirt, shoes, and lets go. You need to meet the rest of the Team." She said. I sighed and nodded as she left.

My name is Joshua Kilian, and I'm 17 years old. When I was 12, my parents were killed by an insane priest who had discovered my powers. He said that my powers were given to me by the devil, and that protecting me made them heretics. Firstly, my parents were atheists; they didn't care about my powers. When they told that to the priest, he pulled out a ceremonial blade, and killed them both. He was about to kill me, 'in the name of God,' but ended up dead himself, at my hand. The only life I've ever taken and I've never regretted it. He killed my mother and stepfather, he deserved what he got. I never knew my biological father, but my mother remarried when was 1, so my stepfather was really the only father I ever had… and a pretty good one too. I do know who my biological father is, but I don't like thinking about him.

"I hate getting up…" I groaned as I got out of bed and took a shower. At least when you get out of bed, the one good thing you get is a nice hot shower. After I finished said shower, I slipped on a pair of boxers and clicked a button that was on my laptop's keyboard. The wall next to my desk opened like a door, revealing my suit.  
"Hello gorgeous." I said with a grin. My uniform consisted of black leather jeans that were easy to move in, a black armoured jacket with a few blue accents, black gloves and boots, a utility belt, a domino mask, and a long black cloak with a hood and blue shuriken clasp. On the back of the cloak was a blue Chaos symbol, as well as in the centre of the armoured jacket.  
"Well, time to suit up." I said, not losing my grin. I slipped on the pants first; followed by the jacket, over an undershirt, the belt, boots, gloves, and cloak. When I was done with all that, I grabbed the mask and looked into the mirror that was on top of my chest of drawers. With a smirk, I focused my powers. My brown hair turned black, and my scleras did as well, making my bright blue irises stand out. I slipped the mask on and pulled my hood up, grinning into the mirror.  
"Hello handsome." I joked into the mirror as I left my room, greeted by my adoptive mother and mentor; Dinah Lance, aka, Black Canary.

"So, when do we leave?" I asked her as she placed a cup of coffee in front of me as I sat down. I drank it and smiled at her gratefully.  
"You can go as soon as you're done. I need to help Arrow and Batman with something." She said as she donned her jacket.  
"Got it." I said as I drank the last of my coffee.  
"See you there?" I asked her. She nodded.  
"Bye Josh." She said with a smile.  
"See ya Mom." I responded as I sank into the ground. Yes, you heard me, SANK. Where I was standing, others could only see a circular shaped shadow that travelled across the surfaces that I sank into. In this case: the floor. I shadowed, that's what I call it, through the floor of our apartment and out of the building, into an alleyway. I materialised myself out of the ground and entered an old broken police box.  
"Recognised, Heretic – B01" The computer said. With a smirk, I let myself be transported from where I am, to Mount Justice.

* * *

 **Mount Justice – August 3** **rd** **– 12:10 EDT**

"And the prodigal son returns." I announced with a smirk as I exited the Zeta-tube, greeted by my 3 friends: Robin, Aqualad, Kid Flash, along with a Martian teenage girl.  
"Heretic!" Robin exclaimed with a grin. He walked over to me and we high-fived.  
"Nice to see you Man." KF said with a grin as he zoomed over to me and we fist-bumped.  
"Hello my friend." Aqualad said as we shook hands in greeting.  
"Hey guys. Sorry I've been gone for so long. Canary had me undercover in London these past few weeks, and I only got back yesterday morning." I said to them sheepishly.  
"Don't worry about it! Come meet Miss M." Robin said with a grin. I nodded and we walked over to the green girl, who was smiling at me cheerfully.

"Hi there! I'm M'gann M'orzz, but you call Megan. Miss Martian in uniform." She said with a cheerful smile, which I returned.  
"Joshua Kilian, Heretic in uniform." I told her as I pulled down my hood. She smiled brightly.  
"Heretic, I have something to discuss with you and the Team." Aqualad spoke up. I turned to him and nodded.  
"Sure, but what about the last member? Superboy was it?" I asked. Dinah had told me about the Team, and how it came to be. Robin nodded.  
"That's him, but he's not here. He probably won't care and will just go along with it." He said. I nodded in understanding.  
"So, what do you need Kal?" I asked my Atlantean friend.

"I have discussed this with both Batman and Black Canary, we all agree that it would be best for you to take the mantle of Leader of the Team." Kaldur explained to me calmly. I widened my eyes.  
"What?" I asked. Robin answered.  
"In the beginning, KF and I were competing for the spot until Aqualad stepped up and we all agreed for it to be him. But when we heard you'd be coming back…" He trailed off.  
"We all thought it would a good idea for you to take over." KF finished for him.  
"OK but… why?" I asked after a pause.  
"You have the most experience, a year more than Robin. You think logically and will be able to have the Team perform at its best." Aqualad responded.  
"Plus, you are the oldest of all of us." KF added. True. I was 17, Robin 13, Kaldur 16, Wally 15, and M'gann seemed to be 16, but I don't know how Martian maturity works.  
"I don't know you yet, but I'm going to take their word for it. You'll make a great leader." M'gann said with a smile. I smiled gratefully and nodded.  
"Alright, I accept the job, but only if you're sure." I told Aqualad, who nodded.

* * *

After bonding with Miss Martian, and getting a nice tour of the Mountain, the Team and I decided on a little bit of Air Hockey with the cave's holo computer. KF and Aqualad were playing their game, while Robin, M'gann and I were watching from the sidelines.  
"You never said what your powers were, Heretic." M'gann spoke up. She was right.  
"Good point." I responded and held my hand up. I focussed a little, and my hand seemed to be surrounded by what looks like black flames, making M'gann gasp in shock.  
"I have the ability to control and generate shadows and dark energy. It's called umbrakinesis." I told her. She watched in wonder as the black flames huddled together to form the shape of a shuriken made of shadows, floating and spinning slowly above my palm.  
"I can morph the darkness into weapons and other shapes, kinda like a Green Lantern, I can see in the dark, sink into any surface as a shadow, and I can fly." I listed some of my powers.  
"Wow…" She mumbled in awe.  
"I also have telekinesis and telepathy." I added.  
"You're a telepath?" She asked in surprise. I nodded.  
"That's amazing! So am I!" She exclaimed happily. I heard Robin chuckle behind his hands as M'gann engulfed me in a hug.

"Recognised, Superboy – B05." The computer announced as KF managed to beat Kaldur again, much to his annoyance.  
"Hey Superboy! How was Metropolis?" M'gann asked the clone as he walked toward us with a scowl on his face. He ignored her and just continued to walk right through the holographic air hockey table, deactivating it.  
"Jesus, grumpy much?" I asked Robin, who gave a slight chuckle, muffled by his hands.  
"I can hear you." Superboy growled as he turned to face me, a glare covering his features.  
"You were supposed to. That was quite rude of you to ignore M'gann like that." I told him simply as I crossed my arms. He growled and got closer to me.  
"Who even are you?" He asked me angrily. I smirked at him.  
"Heretic, your new Team leader." I told him with cheeky grin.  
"What about Aqualad!?" He asked in a raised voice as he turned to face said Atlantean.  
"I have handed the position to him. He is more experienced, and older than any of us. He is the logical choice." Aqualad shrugged. Superboy huffed and continued to walk away.

"Ready for training everyone?" a familiar feminine voice called out to us from behind.  
"Hey Mom." I said happily. She smiled at me. I know she loves it when I call her Mom. She is technically my adoptive Mother, but she knows how difficult it is for me to say the word 'Mom' without thinking of my birth mother.  
"Uncle J'onn!" M'gann exclaimed, just as happy as me. Though, she flew over to hug her uncle.  
"M'gann, I was in the neighbourhood, so I thought I'd see how you are adjusting." J'onn told his niece with a smile.  
"A few bumps, but I'm learning." M'gann told him, a little sheepish.  
 _"Hello J'onn."_ I greeted the Martian telepathically.  
 _"Hello Joshua. It is nice to see you are back."_ J'onn responded.  
 _"Good to be back."_ I told him with a slight smile.

"Stick around, class is in session." I heard Canary say. I turned to face her, seeing that she's talking to Superboy, who was about to walk away. He stopped and crossed his arms, but stayed put.  
"I consider it an honour to be your teacher." Canary said as she walked to the centre of the training circle.  
"I'll throw a lot at you. Everything I've learned from my own mentors." She winced slightly as she took off her jacket, revealing a bandage on her upper left arm.  
"And my own bruises." She added with slightly joking grin.  
"What happened?" I asked in concern. I HATE it when she gets hurt.  
"The job. Calm down Josh." She said when she saw how concerned I was. I took a deep breath and nodded.  
"Now, combat is about controlling conflict; putting the battle on your terms. You should always be acting, never reacting." She explained in teacher-like tone.  
"I'll need a sparring partner." She added.  
"Right here!" KF beat me to it. He walked into the circle, eating a banana.  
"After this, I'll show you my moves." He said with a grin. I glared at him. I mean, that's my MOM! OK, to be fair, even I have to admit that Dinah is an attractive woman, a freaking KNOCKOUT, but that's my mother for Christ's sake! And he's hitting on her!

Canary on the other hand, just seemed amused. She gave him a slight smirk before sending a punch. KF easily blocked the punch, but Canary was fast. Immediately after the punch, she spun and swept a kick under him, tripping him.  
"It hurts so good…" he groaned from the ground. I couldn't help laughing at his misfortune.  
"Good block." Canary complemented as she helped him up.  
"Did anyone see what he did wrong?" Canary asked the rest of us.  
"Oh Oh! He hit on teacher/best friend's mother and got served?" Robin asked with a grin.  
"His eyes weren't where they were supposed to be?" I asked, matching his grin.  
"He thought he would be able to get out unscathed?" Aqualad asked with a small smirk.  
"You guys suck!" KF whined.  
"He allowed me to dictate the terms of-" Canary got cut off by Superboy.  
"Oh please. With my power the battle is always on my terms. I'm a living weapon, and this is waste of my time." He said and turned to walk away. I glared at him. One thing I am not afraid to admit is that I'm a big Mama's boy, and I will NOT let him walk out on my mother's training like that. This may be an excellent opportunity for him to learn something.  
"Prove it." I called out to him. He turned and glared at me.  
"Josh…" Canary said warningly, yet worriedly at the same time.  
"I've been chosen as the leader of this team. It's my job to show him that this is necessary for our future missions." I told her. She seemed a bit surprised that the Team chose me to lead, but nodded, albeit reluctantly. I took off my cloak and dropped it to the ground before Superboy and I both got into battle stances.

After a moment, he lunged at me. Now, I'm not stupid. Fighting a Kryptonian head-on would be stupid. I need to be smart here, since one hit could be the end of me. Even at my full power, Superboy is stronger, and more durable than me. So, I did the smart thing; I dodged his attack with a simple sidestep. Because of the momentum behind his attack, he went flying straight into the ground, making the computer think he was tossed there, leaving a 'Superboy: Fail' marker behind where he fell. I heard Robin laughing at the downed Kryptronian, and saw Kaldur elbow him. He stopped laughing openly, but was cackling behind his hands.

"You missed." I told Superboy as he got to his feet. He growled at me angrily.  
"Anger is good in a fight, but don't let it control you. Use it to-" he cut me off as he lunged at me with a roar. I charged my right foot with some dark energy, making a black glow cover it, and jumped up a foot or 2 above the ground, delivering a charged spinning kick at him, sending him into the wall.  
"Superboy!" M'gann cried in concern, while Robin continued cackling behind his gloves.  
"He's fine." I told her confidently. It's unlikely that he's hurt, but he definitely felt that kick. He crawled back to his feet and jumped up high, trying to deliver a hammering punch. I sidestepped just before he landed, leaving a dent where his attack hit. Before he could do anything else, I trapped him in binds of dark energy, formed a katana of darkness and held it to his throat.  
"And that's your head." I told him. He growled and ripped through the shadows, which was impressive; it takes immense force to break through me energy like that.  
"That's it, I'm done." He growled as he stormed off. I shook my head and went over to my cloak, flinging it over my shoulders before clasping it by the shuriken clasp.  
"Training is mandatory." Canary told Superboy before he could get far. He turned to face her with a scowl.

Suddenly, an alert came from the caves speakers, and a holographic image of Batman appeared in the form of a screen.  
"Batman to the cave. 5 hours ago, a new menace attacked Green Arrow and Black Canary. The attacker was capable of studying and then duplicating the powers and abilities of its opponents." Batman explained. Nice to see you too Bats, geez.  
"Arrow called in reinforcements, which nearly proved disastrous, as our foe gained more and more power with each new combatant." Batman continued.  
"Woah. One guy with the powers of the entire league?" KF asked in awe.  
"Intense. Must've been a long battle." I said, just as in awe as him as I looked at my Mom's arm. She nodded in conformation, knowing what I was thinking.  
"You are correct, Heretic." Batman told me. I turned my attention back to the screen.  
"It took 8 leaguers 4 hours to defeat and dismantle the android." He continued.  
"An android? Who made it? T.O. Morrow?" Robin asked. I rolled my eyes in amusement. What a stupid name.  
"Good guess Robin, but Red Tornado doesn't think so." Batman told us.  
"He's right. No flashy colours, no big insignia, that's not Morrow's style. My best guess would be Professor Ivo." I spoke up. Everyone looked at me with wide eyes.

"Heretic is right." Martian Manhunter spoke up. We all turned to face him.  
"The technology bears Professor Ivo's signature." He explained.  
"But Ivo is dead!" Aqualad protested.  
"So we all thought." Canary said, turning to face Aqualad.  
"Or hoped." I added. She nodded in agreement before Batman continued.  
"To make certain this threat is permanently neutralised, we're sending 2 trucks carrying the android's parts to 2 separate STAR Labs facilities in Boston and New York for immediate evaluation." He explained as the screen turned to a map showing the 2 locations.  
"Every precaution is being taken. We'll have 4 additional decoy trucks to create confusion in case Ivo, or anyone, tries to steal the remains. You will split into undercover teams to safe guard the 2 real trucks." Batman completed his explanation of our mission.

"Yes, road trip!" KF exclaimed in excitement.  
"So now we take out your trash?" Superboy asked Batman in anger.  
"You have something better to do?" Batman asked with narrowed eyes. Wow, never thought I'd live to see the day Batman gets sarcastic. I heard a beeping coming from my watch. I clicked it and a holographic screen, like Robin's, appeared over it. Birthday present from Robin.  
"Co-ordinates received." I told him. He nodded.  
"Before we go, how did you know to send them to me? You must have known I'm the new leader if you sent them to me." I told him with my head tilted.  
"I'm Batman." He said simply. I facepalmed.  
"Well, not gonna get any other answer. Let's go." I told the team, who nodded. We all walked off towards where the bikes were parked, but I heard Canary stopping Superboy.  
"I'll be here, when you're ready." She told him gently. He didn't react, just continued walking. I sighed and followed.

* * *

The Team and I, I should probably think of a name for it, where in a large field, on our bikes. My bike was black with red flames painted all over, and we were all wearing biking clothes.  
"Alright guys, listen up." I announced. They all turned their attention to me.  
"Aqualad and Kid Flash, you're with me headed over to New York. Miss M, Robin, Superboy, you're all going to Boston." I told them. They all nodded, sans Superboy, who was glaring in Superman's direction. I turned and saw Superman looking away and frowned. What a jackass. Can't he see Superboy needs him? Well, Batman or Canary will probably sort him out.  
"Alright, they're getting to leave!" I announced.  
"Yes! Let's go!" Kid Flash said happily as he revved his bike.  
"Stay focussed Kid. This is dangerous stuff we're guarding." I told him.  
"That doesn't mean we can't have some fun while we're at it." he responded with a grin as and the rest of us donned our helmets.

We heard the trucks driving off and we all set out, following our chosen trucks.  
"Good luck Team." I said through the radio. I heard a scoff.  
"We're just taking out trash. No need for good luck." Superboy grumbled.  
"Things are never that simple Superboy." I told him. He didn't reply. We rode our bikes in silence, but a few minutes later, I heard a voice in my head.  
 _"Heretic, can you hear me?"_ M'gann's voice asked.  
 _"Loud and clear Miss M. What's up?"_ I asked her. I felt her shifting a little through the link.  
 _"Do you think Superboy's OK? I'm not reading his mind, but I can feel anger flowing off of him in waves."_ She explained. I sighed heavily.  
 _"Don't worry about him. He's angry with Superman, and probably me too. Just give him time to cool off. A nice quiet mission would do a world of wonders for him."_ I told her.  
 _"Got it. Thanks Josh."_ She said gratefully. I could feel her smiling.  
 _"No problem M'gann."_ I told her, smiling back.

"So Josh, you never told us what you're mission was about." Wally said as he sped up a little to catch up with me.  
"Indeed. I must admit that I am curious." Aqualad agreed as he too came to my side on his bike. I just shrugged my shoulders.  
"Nothing major. Ra's Al Ghul had a few assassins running around in London, planning to kill the queen, for whatever reason. I just had to go undercover as one of the castle's butlers and protect her Majsty." I explained.  
"Awesome!" Wally exclaimed with a massive grin under his helmet.  
"I agree." Aqualad added. I just shrugged again.  
"It wasn't that big a deal. I just beat up a bunch of Ra's' Shadows and sent them packing." I said.  
"It is more than that. You protected royalty." Aqualad reasoned.  
"Yeah! But I'm jealous that you get all the awesome missions!" Wally whined. I chuckled under my breath at the display.  
"Heretic! Kid! Look!" Aqualad suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the truck. There were multiple monkey-like robots attacking the truck, using lasers to cut into the steel.  
"Alright, Kid, you get the driver to safety, Aqualad, switch to battle mode and cover me while I retrieve the parts." I told them. They nodded.

KF abandoned his bike and ran to get the driver, while Aqualad pressed a button on his bike. The back wheel separated and morphed into a drone-like device, while the front wheel sank into the body of the bike, making it resemble a high-tech unicycle. I jumped off of my bike and flew to the top of the truck. I sent a few blasts of dark energy, destroying a couple of the monkeys, and Aqualad used his water bearers to form whips and whack a few of the monkeys away. The drone from his bike shot at a few of the robots.

"Heretic, our truck is being attacked!" I heard Robin tell me over the comlink.  
"I figured as much; ours too." I told him as I smashed the head of a monkey that was about to enter the truck through the hole that had been created. Sadly, I was starting to get overwhelmed. There were too many. A couple had managed to sneak into the hole and make it to the parts. I only realised this when I saw them flying out with the crate that contained the parts.  
"No!" I exclaimed in fear as the rest of the monkeys flew off.  
"Robin, the robots got our crate, what about you?" I asked over the comlink desperately. I heard a heavy sigh.  
"They're gone. And so is mine and Miss M's partner." He reported in a grumble. I switched my com to contact Superboy.  
"Superboy, stand down now!" I ordered him.  
"Radio your position and we'll help you." I told him.  
"I don't need help! Don't want any!" He growled back. All I heard was static after that.

"Superboy? Superboy respond!" I ordered.  
"He probably ditched his com." Robin said as Aqualad and Kid Flash came up to me.  
"Super." Kid said sarcastically.  
"We can't even track him now." Aqualad added.  
"And he's out of my telepathic range. What about you Heretic?" Miss Martin asked me over the com. I placed my hand on head and tried to locate Superboy, to no avail.  
"Same." I answered with a sigh.  
"My first mission as leader goes south." I grumbled to myself in disappointment.  
"Don't be too hard on yourself Man." Kid comforted with a smile. Aqualad nodded in agreement.  
"Our first mission went worse than this. We will make a comeback." He agreed. I took a deep breath and nodded.

"This Professor Ivo seems to always be 2 steps ahead of us." Miss Martian mused over the com.  
"Maybe we should contact Red Tornado?" She suggested. Aqualad shook his head.  
"He would tell us to handle this ourselves." He reminded her. I raised my eyebrow.  
"Really? Anybody else would have jumped in by now." I pointed out.  
"I said the same thing." Kid added.  
"Our mission can still succeed if we get the parts back before Ivo reassembles them." I spoke up.  
"Well that's a great plan, except we have no idea where to look!" Kid exclaimed the last part.  
"We're right next to you! No need to raise your voice!" I exclaimed, just as loud as him.  
"I have an idea." Robin spoke up over the com.  
"Let's hear it." I told him.

"We'd have heard by now if the monkeys attacked the other trucks." He pointed out. My eyes widened in realisation. That was true.  
"Which begs the question, how did they know exactly which trucks to hit?" I asked as I kneeled by one of the destroyed monkeys and plugged it into my holo-computer with the cable that comes out of it.  
"Hah! The parts have GPS!" Robin exclaimed triumphantly as I typed on my screen. I assume he was doing the same.  
"They do." I agreed as I read off of my holo-screen.  
"The parts let out a small signal, easily picked up and tracked by the monkeys." I reported from what I could see on my screen.  
"Which means we can track them with a captured monkey." Robin added.  
"I got one." I told him.  
"Me too." He responded as I stood up.  
"Both sets are headed towards…" I trailed off as my holo-computer progressed the signal.  
"Gotham City…" Robin and I said in unison. I would guess that his eyes are as wide as mine.

"That is very far South…" Aqualad pointed out. I nodded in agreement.  
"Kid, I want you to go on ahead and meet up with Robin and Miss M." I told the young speedster. He nodded with a smirk as he pulled his goggles down and sped off into the distance.  
"Robin, Miss Martin, I sent KF ahead to meet with you 2, since you're closer." I told them.  
"Understood." They said in unison and cut the com link.  
"I know you can travel faster by the shadows." Aqualad told me. I shook my head.  
"I don't want any of my team members to be alone for too long." I told him. He gave me a slight smile.  
"I'll be fine." He assured me. I still couldn't drop my feeling of reluctance.  
"You sure?" I asked him. He nodded. I gave a heavy sigh before sinking into the ground and shadowing off into the distance, almost as fast as KF.

* * *

I caught up to Kid, Miss M and Robin, who were running, flying and riding respectively, towards Gotham City. I emerged from the shadows, flying next to them.  
"You guys changed to?" I asked them, seeing that they were back uniform, and not in their biker clothes. I did the same whilst in the shadows. Really handy, those things are.  
"You kidding? I feel naked in civvied!" Kid exclaimed. I rolled my eyes under my mask.  
"You 2 still tracking the parts?" KF asked us. I nodded and activated my holo-screen as I flew.  
"They were heading through Gotham, but they changed course." I told them.  
"To where?" Robin asked as he activated his own holo-screen.  
"Wait, Dude! They're at my school!" he exclaimed.  
"Oh god…" I groaned. I had hoped to NEVER see the inside of a school building again. Oh well, what can you do?  
"Something wrong Heretic?" Miss Martian asked me worriedly as flew beside me. I shook my head.  
"Just not a fan of school buildings." I told her with a shudder. High School was VERY unpleasant time for me. But, I managed to pull through and graduated by 15, so I managed.

* * *

We made it to Gotham Academy, finding the inside trashed. I couldn't help the small grin that made its way to my face.  
"Where are the parts?" KF asked. I pulled up my holo-screen.  
"Gym." I told them. They all nodded and we ran/flew towards said gym. What we found was not a pleasant discovery.  
"Oh no…" I groaned hopelessly. The android had been reassembled! And it was pummelling Superboy! Was there no end to my lead going south?  
"Kid, get Superboy!" I ordered the team speedster. He nodded and zoomed towards the android and clone. Just as the former was about to smash the latter, Kid zoomed past and grabbed the Kryptonian with 'yoink!' and brought him to us.  
"Robin, shuriken!" I ordered the Boy Wonder. He nodded and we both threw shuriken at the android, his being the normal explosives, mine being made of shadow energy.  
"Access, Martian Manhunter." The android said and turned intangible like the aforementioned Martian, making the shuriken pass through him and explode against the wall.

Here's where things got really complicated. Amazo kept going from one Leaguer to the next. If I wasn't so focussed on dismantling it, I would have been annoyed.  
"Access, Red Tornado." A red cortex appeared around his legs and he flew towards us. None of us were able to move in time, and we all got tossed into different directions.  
"Access, Captain Atom." Kid Flash ran away before the yellow beam could hit him.  
"Access, Black Canary." Amazo opened his mouth and sent KF flying with a copy Canary Cry.  
"Superman." Amazo blocked a punch from Superboy and sent him flying. Robin threw a few bat-a-rangs at the android and I shot at it with a few shadow blasts.  
"Martian Manhunter." Amazo's arms extended like whips and destroyed my blasts and Robin's explosives, leaving little damage. Kid Flash ran straight for the android.  
"Superman." Amazo grabbed Kid Flash and started squeezing him, making the speedster scream in pain. But I heard something fire at them, which Amazo most certainly heard too.  
"Martian Manhunter." Amazo turned intangible, releasing Kid Flash, and making the arrow that was shot pass right through him. The arrow landed near Robin and I as KF got away from the android. I shot a few more blasts at Amazo, which did little damage. Then I saw Superboy was running up to Amazo.  
"Access, Black Canary." Amazo caught Superboy by his arm and tossed him into the gym seats.  
"Captain Atom." Amazo shot yellow beams at the benches that Miss Martian tossed at him with telekinesis.

Robin and I threw more shuriken at the android, but they did little to no damage, again.  
"Superman." Amazo's eyes burned red and beams of the same colour shot at me and the Bot Wonder. KF zoomed by and grabbed Robin, while I shadowed to where Superboy is.  
"SB, you OK?" I asked him as I helped him up.  
"Yeah…" He grunted as he got up to his knees, glaring daggers at the android. I thought he was about to go ballistic again, but what he said next surprised me.  
"Access Heretic…" He mumbled in a tone that suggested he had an idea. He looked at me and we both shared a nod, our plan made. We were about to execute it, but we stopped when we heard Ivo yawn in exasperation.  
"Normally, Amazo would study and mimic you all in battle, but whats the point?" He asked in a bored tone.  
"Besides Heretic, whom Amazo cannot study for one reason or another, you're all such cheap copies of the original." He said with a smirk. Superboy and I both grit our teeth in anger at that comment. I gave him a nod, telling him to go ahead.  
"So everyone says… It makes me angry!" he yelled as he jumped towards Ivo, who just barely managed to dodge the blow. I, in the mean time, shadowed to the ground under Amazo, staying there.  
"Wanna see me use that anger?!" Superboy roared.

"Guys, we need to get Amazo to use Martian Manhunter's intangibility." I said to the group over a telepathic link.  
 _"Understood."_ Miss Martian responded.  
 _"We got you Leader."_ KF said with a grin.  
"Amazo! Protect your Master! Priority Alpha!" Ivo exclaimed as Superboy chased him through the gym.  
"Captain Atom." Amazo shot more yellow beams and hit Superboy.  
"Anyone wanna play keep-away?" Robin asked out loud with a grin as approached Ivo, who was being held up in the air about 2 feet by 2 of his robot monkeys.  
"I do! I do!" Miss Martian exclaimed in fake childishness, playing along with Robin. She used her telekinesis to destroy the monkeys holding Ivo and Robin delivered a swift kickj to his backside.  
"Me too! Me too!" KF exclained, also playing along as he ran towards Ivo.  
"Superman." Amazo slammed his foot on the ground, thankfully not on top of shadow-me, sending a stream of destruction, blocking the young speedster. Robin took the opportunity to throw a few more shuriken.  
"Martian Manhunter." Amazo went intangible, and I took my chance. Superboy too. I shot out of the ground a pushed my fist through the android's stomach, and Superboy jumped in front of it, pushing his fist through the head. Since our bodies were stronger than the android's circuits, it exploded when the intangibility fell, falling to the ground.

"Quick! Help me disassemble him!" Robin exclaimed as he and Miss Martian ran over.  
"Dude, there's a gaping hole in his chest, and he has no head." KF deadpanned.  
"better to not take any chances." I spoke up.  
"Miss Martian." I called for our Martian member's attention. She knew what I was thinking and nodded at me. We both held our hands out, and our eyes glowed white. Yes, my eyes glow white when I use telekinesis. Amazo lifted up into the sky and we pulled him apart into 2 sections.  
"That should do it." I said. Miss Martian nodded in agreement.  
"It appears I missed out on the fun." I heard Aqualad's voice call out. I nodded at him.  
"Sorry about that." I said with a sheepish grin. He shook his head.  
"I think we all made a good choice." He told the rest of the team, who nodded in agreement.  
"Definitely an aster, you being leader." Superboy said with a grin. I looked at him weirdly.  
"Oh come on! That's obvious!" I heard Robin groan. I turned my attention to him.  
"Dislike, like. Disaster, aster." He said as if was the most obvous thing in the world. I facepalmed.  
"Great, he's butchering the English language now. Fantastic." I groaned. Robin smirked at me.  
"Oh, this is going to be fun." He said with usual insane cackle. The whole team and I groaned in unison this time.  
"Hey! Where's Ivo?" KF suddenly exclaimed. We all shot our heads in different directions, trying to locate the missing scientist.

* * *

 **Mount Justice – August 4** **th** **– 1:06 EDT**

"The Amazo android is split in 2 again, separated and being analysed at the 2 STAR Labs. Sadly, Ivo escaped. Since he built the thing in the first place, I would say he's more dangerous." I reported to the League members present; Black Canary, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow, Batman, and red Tornado.  
"The League will make capturing the Professror a top priority." My mother told me with a proud smile. I couldn't help blushing at the look of prode she was giving me.  
"But, we understand your mission encountered other complications." J'onn pointed out, more like a statement than a question. We all sent looks in Superboy's direction, who looked away.  
"Complications come with the job." Batman said as he walked closer to us.  
"Your ability to handle them has impressed the League." He added.  
"The whole League?" Superboy aasled hopefully.  
"Given time, yes. Krytonians, as you know, have very hard heads." Batman replied, **almost** jokingly. Superboy looked away with a small smile, but my jaw dropped to the ground. THE Batman, just told a joke?! What is the world coming to?

"Of course there's no shame in asking for help. That's why the League exists because there are some problems that even we can't handle individually." The Caped Crusader continued.  
"Please, if we needed help, we'd never get the chance to ask. Look familiar?" Robin asked, pulling out the arrow from earlier.  
"You were following us! Babysitting, you still don't trust us!" He exclaimed angrily. Batman took the arrow and handed it over to GA.  
"We didn't follow you." Batman said as GA got one of his own arrows and compared it to the mystery one. They were not the same… but they weren't Roy's either.  
"And that's not your arrow." Robin realised.  
"But that means…" He trailed off with a smile.  
"Speedy!" Kid Flash exclaimed happily.  
"He has our backs." Aqualad added with a smile. Kid Flash over to GA and grabbed the arrow.  
"Souvenir!" He said with a grin. I saw Green Arrow and Batman share a look.  
 _"That's not Speedy's arrow, is it?"_ I asked GA telepathically. He didn't respond, just looked away. That was all the confirmation I needed.

I saw Superboy walking over to Canary. She looked at him expectantly.  
"I'm ready." He said simply. I smiled at him.  
"Good, because I'm here." She told him. Superboy smiled at her slightly, earning one from her.  
"Would it be OK if Josh assists me?" She suddenly asked. Superboy nodded, sending me apologetic smile.  
"Don't worry about it." I told him before he could say anything. He smiled again and Canary beamed at me proudly, making me blush again.

* * *

"So, who are they?" I asked Dinah as we shed our cloak and jacket, respectively, in our living room. I took my mask off with a sigh.  
"Who?" She asked playing dumb. I gave a deadpanned expression.  
"Mother, I'm a genius with an IQ of 195, I know when you're hiding something. That wasn't Roy's arrow. So, who's GA's new apprentice?" I asked her. She sighed and leaned back.  
"Her name is Artemis Crock. She'll be joining the Team in about a week." She told me. Crock? Where have I heard that name before?  
"Should probably think of a name for the Team." I mumbled.  
"So, I assume I'm gonna have to make her suit?" I asked. She nodded sheepishly. I sighed and fell back into the couch in exasperation.  
"When will she be here?" I asked as I covered my face with my hands.  
"Tomorrow…" Dinah muttered. I groaned this time.  
"Alright, may as well get some sleep." I said with a sigh as I got up.  
"Aw, but I wanted to on about how proud I am of my little leader!" She whined with a pout. I rolled my eyes and blushed in embarrassment.  
"You're embarrassing me, Mom. I'm going to bed." I said as I walked off to my bedroom. I heard her laugh.  
"Goodnight Little Bird." She called out to me. I chuckled a little at the nickname. She gave me that nickname when I first became Heretic.  
"Goodnight Mother dearest." I called back as I closed my door and shed my jacket, gloves and boots. Without changing my pants, I climbed into bed in my undershirt and leather pants, falling asleep almost instantly.

 **OK, I am NOT starting a new story here. This is just something I wrote when I was bored. I have no intention of going any further with this story, yet. If you want me to continue this AFTER Halfling Justice and Shade Among Rebels, fine. But not anytime soon.**

 **I've had this stored on my PC for weeks. I just decided to upload it because it was my birthday on the 22** **nd** **, that is yesterday, and I was feeling generous. So, I gave you guys something to read.**

 **And yes, before anybody asks, this was imagined as a Heretic x Artemis story when I first wrote it.**

 **Ciao!**


	2. A New Partner

**Star City – August 5** **th** **– 13:07 EDT**

I had just gotten out of the shower and was slipping on my jeans when I heard Dinah calling for me.  
"Josh! Get down here! She's arrived!" My mother called out to me. My head perked up at that last point.  
"New blood." I said in a creepy tone and gave an evil cackle. Then I laughed at my own stupidity.  
"Coming! Just getting dressed! I just out of the shower!" I called back to her.  
"Hurry!" She responded. Geez, impatient much? Well, I guess I take after her then, hehe. I slipped on the rest of my usual clothes: my jeans were black, and they were accompanied by black converse, a black T-shirt with a giant wolf on the chest, and my favorite pendant of a dragon twisted into a reversed S shape. I slipped on my grey hoodie with the zip down and approached my door.  
"Coming!" I yelled out as I opened my door and shot out. I travelled down the stairs to the living room, greeted by Dinah, Ollie, and a blond girl a little younger than me. She wore black skinny jeans, a green crop top, black half-heels, and a brown jacket. Quite a pretty girl. Definitely part Asian though, given her skin tone. Her eyes were a very beautiful shade of dark grey.

"Hey Ollie. Morning Mom. Hello new girl." I greeted them all. Ollie and Dinah chuckled as the former approached me. I gave him a one armed hug from the side.  
"Hey Kid. Nice to see you back." He said as he returned the hug.  
"Nice to be back." I told him with a grin.  
"Josh, this is Artemis. She's going to be my new protégé." Ollie said. I smiled at the girl in a friendly manner and held out my hand.  
"Joshua Kilian. You can call me Josh. Heretic in uniform." I introduced myself. She looked a bit skeptical.  
"Seen Heretic on the news. He has black hair." She said in suspicion. I chuckled and closed my eyes. I focused my powers into my hair and eyes, changing my hair black and my scleras too. As I opened my eyes, Artemis gasped. I chuckled at her reaction.  
"A little trick I picked up. I can channel my shadow energy into my hair and eyes making them black. It doesn't do anything else, but it is a handy trick for hiding my identity. The mask and hood are just extra precautions." I explained with a grin as I changed back.

She smiled at me, having gotten over her surprise, and shook my hand when I extended it again.  
"Artemis Crock. Artemis as well in uniform; that you're going to make." She said with a grin. I groaned.  
"May as well get it overwith…" I mumbled. They all laughed.  
"Well Josh, Ollie and I have a lunch date. Can I trust you to be a perfect gentleman?" Dinah asked me with a smirk. Both Artemis and I exploded into blushes at what she was implying and I glared at her. But, then I got an idea, giving her an evil smirk.  
"Only if you promise to keep your bedroom activities at Ollie's place. I don't want to be woken up again." I said with my arms crossed. Artemis blushed a little more, but laughed at my comeback, while Dinah and Ollie exploded into blushes of their own. Without another word, they left.  
"Be sure to use protection!" I called after them. They ran after that.

Artemis and I were rolling on the floor laughing. Well, she was on the couch, I was on the floor. It was few minutes before we managed to calm down.  
"So, they woke you up once?" She asked me with a grin as I sat beside her. I nodded, matching her grin.  
"Yeah, when Dinah's bedroom window shattered. She's a screamer, I'll tell you that." I told her. We both laughed slightly at that.  
"Black Canary a screamer, who'd have thought?" She asked with a giggle. I laughed at the joke too; it was very true.  
"Anyway," I started as I wiped a tear of laughter away.  
"You wanna get started on designing your suit?" I asked her. She nodded eagerly. I chuckled and used my telekinesis to bring my sketchpad and pencil over to my hands from their place on the kitchen counter.  
"Whoa…" Artemis mumbled in awe as the 2 items flew to my hands. I smiled her and started to design her suit, based on her figure and posture.

"OK, idea number 1." I told her as I drew. She skidded closer to me, making me blush a little, and peeked over at my design as I drew.  
"A basic remake of GA's suit, only more feminine. Sleeveless?" I asked her. She thought for a moment and nodded. I nodded back and drew.  
"OK, full body unitard, no sleeves, gloves will be necessary to help with the bow." I added in the gloves. Artemis stopped me when they long enough up the figure's arms; just below the elbows.  
"Am armored vest is always a good idea, but limits movement." I mused to her. She looked deep in thought for a moment.  
"No vest. I need to be able to move." She said. I nodded and focused back on the drawing.  
"Ok to conceal your identity, the usual options are a domino mask, a full face mask, or a hood. Which would you go with?" I asked her. She didn't seem to like those options much.  
"Would a hood with a mask covering my mouth work?" She asked. I smiled and nodded.  
"Good idea." I told her. She smiled as I drew in her request.  
"Oh! How about an arrowhead in the centre of the chest?" She asked. I smiled again and drew in the symbol.  
"Add in combat boots, and there's idea number 1." I told her as I showed her the finished result. To recap, the suit consisted of a full body unitard, gloves that went almost up to the elbows, a hood, and a mask that covered the bottom half of the face.  
"Youre really good at this." She said in awe as she took the pad and stared at the suit. I chuckled.  
"Remember, that's only idea 1. 2 more, and then we come up with something with the best parts of all 3. That gives you the ideal suit, making the ideal hero career. The suit is something you need to take very seriously." I told her with a smile as she handed the pad back. She nodded as I flipped the page over to start the next drawing.

"If you get any ideas along the way, tell me. Ok?" I asked her.  
"Got it." She responded. I nodded and started drawing.  
"My next idea, I'll go a little in the direction of Lara Croft." I told her as I started drawing. She perked up at that.  
"I LOVE Lara Croft!" She said with a smile. I smiled back.  
"Me too." I told her as I continued.  
"Crop top, short pants, and combat boots." I started with the simple figure and clothes.  
"Could you strap some pistol crossbows to the thighs?" She asked eagerly. I nodded and drew it in.  
"And with this one, try the domino mask." She told me. I nodded again and followed her request.  
"Again, gloves are necessary for the bow." I said as I drew the gloves in,.  
"This time, make them go up to the shoulders." She said. I did as asked.  
"Hair down or still tied?" I asked her.  
"Tied." She answered. I drew the hair in and showed her the final product. A crop top, short pants, combat boots, crossbows attached to her thighs, shoulder length gloves, and a domino mask. She grinned widely.  
"Last one, and we can get to work." I told her. She nodded, not losing her grin, as I flipped the page over one more time.

"This time, we can try something kinda like Black Canary." I told her as I started drawing the basic frame.  
"Combat pants, fingerless gloves, a tight fitting corset, easy to move in, and combat boots." I started out. Artemis cringed a little at the corset part.  
"No corset?" I asked her, stopping immediately. She nodded.  
"No corset." She said quickly. I chuckled and erased it.  
"How about a simple long sleeve shirt?" I suggested. She nodded in relief.  
"Much better." She said with a shudder. I smiled in amusement and drew the long sleeve shirt in.  
"Now, I can see you like your hair tied back, so this time, I'll put in a mask not unlike Kid Flash's." I started drawing in the mask and hair.  
"It'll cover the top half of your face, leave your hair alone, and the eye areas don't hinder your aim at all." I explained. She nodded in understanding as I drew.  
"And for the finishing touches, I'll add in a utility belt." I told her as finished up. She smiled brightly as I gave her the finished product.  
"You really are incredible, you know that?" She asked me. I blushed and looked away.  
"Thank you…" I murmured and took the sketch pad back. I tore out the 3 drawings and gave them to Artemis.

"Tell me what the best parts of all 3 are and we'll make your suit out of that." I told her. She nodded and went through the 3 drawings. After a few minutes, she spoke up.  
"I like the mask that lets me tie my hair back. Can you attach that to a sleeveless crop top?" She asked. I nodded and drew her request in.  
"The combat pants also work nicely for movement, as long as they're tight fitting." She pointed out.  
"Done." I said as I drew. Her smile got wider as I continued drawing.  
"There really isn't anything other than combat boots to use for footwear." She realized.  
"Yeah." I agreed.  
"It's not a problem though. They're comfortable, and pack a mean kick." I told her with a grin. She grinned back and nodded as I drew the boots.  
"Can you make the gloves up to my elbows fingerless?" She asked.  
"That I can." I responded and drew the gloves.  
"And the utility belt would also be a good idea." She added. I drew in the belt.  
"How about a stylized arrowhead symbol?" I asked her.  
"That works." She shrugged. I smiled and drew a simple arrowhead design on the chest of the drawing.  
"And we are done designing. Artemis Crock, meet Artemis." I told her as I handed her the final design. She smiled so brightly at the picture, she looked like a kid in a candy store on Christmas. **(A/N: Yes, the final product IS the canon costume.)**  
"Let's get started." I said as I stood up and offered my hand to her.  
"Where are we going?" She asked as she took my hand and stood up. I pulled her close to me and wrapped my arms around her waist. She blushed a little.  
"I'm gonna shadow us to Ollie's place. He has tools and materials I can use to make the suit. You ready?" I asked her. She looked away, a little flushed, and nodded. I nodded back and sank us both into the ground and shadowed us to Ollie's home.

* * *

"This is weird…" Artemis mused as we travelled through what I call The Void. It's basically just a completely black void, hence the name. My hoodie flapped in the non-existent wind as we flew.  
"You get used to it." I shrugged with my left arm, since my right was carrying Artemis.  
"How do you know where you're going?" She asked. I shrugged again.  
"I just do. By instinct, I instantly know where in the real world I am. Right now, we're just outside of Ollie's mansion." I told her. She nodded in understanding as I stopped and flew up.  
"This must be a really handy thing." Artemis thought out loud. I nodded in agreement.  
"It is. It's quiet, faster than my typical flight or vehicle, and there's no one to bother me when I need so 'me' time. It's definitely a favorite of mine." I told her with a smirk. She returned it.  
"And we're here." I told her as I stopped our flight.  
"Hold on tight." I instructed as I held her close, getting a little red; I'm not used to girls being so close.  
"Alright…" She mumbled as she held me tightly, also a little red, and I focused on removing us from the Void. We disappeared from sight at that point.

* * *

We emerged from the ground of Ollie's home and I instantly released Artemis, my face getting redder with each second.  
"You OK?" She asked me in concern, losing her blush. I nodded.  
"Yeah… just not used to girls being so close to me… it's a bit weird…" I explained, a bit embarrassed. Artemis gave a slight laugh at that.  
"Uncomfortable having a girl press her chest to yours?" She teased with a smirk. I glared at her, receiving only a chuckle in return.  
"Come on, you know you liked it." She purred teasingly. My eyes flashed as I glared at her.  
"Do you want your suit?" I asked her. She nodded her head vigourously and shut up, making me smirk.  
"That's what I thought." I told her. She huffed and looked away with her arms crossed. This time, it was my turn to chuckle.

"This way please, Madam." I said to her in an exaggerated British accent and walked over to the Mona Lisa copy painting. I pulled a small lever behind it, and it slid up, revealing doorway. Artemis rolled her eyes in amusement at my ranting a walked into the doorway, me following. As the painting slid back down, the lights turned on, revealing Oliver's virtual arsenal of bows, arrows, and other gadgets.  
"Whoa…" Artemis muttered in awe. I chuckled at the look on her face and directed her to the far side of the room, where all of my tailing tools were.  
"Jacket off please." I told her as I held up a measuring tape. She nodded and shed her jacket, placing it over the chair at my desk.  
"Arms up." I instructed and she did so.  
"Sorry if this makes you a bit uncomfortable. It's no picnic for me either." I told her as I wrapped the tape measure around her chest. We both blushed as I did this.  
"Don't worry about it." She responded softly, clearly embarrassed. I brought my notebook over to my side with my telekinesis, along with a pen, and made the pen write the measurements down.

"What do you mean it's no picnic though?" She asked, still a little red. She didn't sound offended, but rather curious. I sighed sadly as slid the tape measure down to her thighs.  
"My birth mother always taught me to respect women and never touch them in an inappropriate way, unless consensual of course." I told her with a redder face as she spread her thighs a little so that I could measure them.  
"She needn't have bothered though, I always thought it was wrong to touch a lady. Dinah has, on multiple occasions, called me chivalrous." I explained as I made the pen take down Artemis' thigh measurements. We were both blushing red.  
"That's quite admirable of you." She said as I took a few more measurements, this time in less appropriate areas. I smiled at her in gratitude.  
"And just so you know, I'm not uncomfortable, just embarrassed. I've never had a guy… touch me before." She mumbled the last part, a little embarrassed about getting so personal. I smiled at her gently as I took the last measurement.  
"Don't worry: I've never touched a girl either. Never even kissed before." I told her. She looked at me with wide eyes as I set the notebook and tape on the desk.

"Never?" She asked. I nodded.  
"Physical contact with a woman makes me uncomfortable. Not because I have anything against women, but I always have this nagging feeling that what I do might not be what the girl wants. And I can't, I won't, read a girl's mind to find out." I explained.  
"So, my love life is going nowhere fast." I said with a sad smile. She looked at me with sympathy.  
"Not that I'm any hurry though. I don't know if I'm boyfriend material." I added with a shrug. Artemis just gave me a deadpanned expression.  
"You're a nice guy, you're handsome, mysterious, smart, and chivalrous. I'm surprised girls aren't throwing themselves at you. What's not to like?" She asked me. I blushed more with every word she spoke. It's the first time a girl my age has ever called me handsome.  
"I'm autistic, socially awkward, chronically depressed, OCD, and a complete nerd. Quite a catch, no?" I asked with a bit of humorless sarcasm. She rolled her eyes.  
"You know, girls like a man with confidence. Get some of that, and you won't be able to step outside without getting a girl's number, at the very least." She added the last part with a smirk. I blushed again.  
"Thank you Artemis, that helps. Mostly." I added the last part quietly, though she still heard it. She smiled warmly at me and nodded, a little amused by my comment.  
"Anyway, I'm gonna get to work. You can pick out the best bow for yourself in the mean time. Try each one and see which one works best for you." I told her. She smiled and nodded. As soon as she was out of earshot, I let out a breath I don't know I had been holding.  
 _"What? Why's my heart beating so fast?"_ I asked myself as I placed my hand over my chest. I quickly shook off this strange feeling and got to work on Artemis' suit. But not before sneaking a glance at her shooting one of Oliver's bows at the targets.  
 _"She's actually quite pretty."_ I thought to myself, blushing as I shook my head and got to work.

* * *

"Introducing…" I said to Black Canary and Green Arrow. They had arrived at the mansion a little while ago, and I'd just finished the suit. We were all in uniform.  
"The latest member of the Team, Artemis!" I said dramatically. Both Arrow and Canary had amused smiles on their faces. Artemis pulled back the curtain that she was hiding behind and struck a pose. Canary and Arrow gave approving looks and applauded.  
"Nice work Josh." Arrow said.  
"You've really outdone yourself Little Bird. I'm very impressed." Canary complimented. I smiled gratefully and blushed a little at the praise.  
"Little Bird?" Artemis asked with a grin. I gave her a light glare, receieving only a laugh in return.  
"Ollie, can you sort her weapons out? That's your field of expertis." I said to Green Arrow, who nodded.  
"Let's go Artemis. You have any ideas what you would want?" He asked the young blond, who nodded. Canary walked up to me a wrapped her arms around me from behind in motherly fashion.  
"You did very well tonight, Little Bird. You've always had trouble meeting new people. This was a good step for you." She said softly. I put on slight smile and hugged her back.  
"Thanks Mom." I muttered back as she gave one last squeeze before letting go.

"We're back." I heard GA announce. Canary and I turned and saw him and Artemis, who now had her equipment: a compound bow, a quiver of arrows, a crossbow strapped to her thigh, and a few more pouches on her belt.  
"Nice choice." I said to her, gesturing to the bow.  
"Those things are awesome to use." I added. She looked at me with her head tilted.  
"You know how to use a bow?" She asked. I nodded.  
"How about a little contest before patrol tonight?" Canary suggested.  
"I second that motion." GA agreed. Artemis and I shared a look before shrugging.  
"Why not?" I asked no one in particular as I created a bow made of shadows.  
"Get ready to lose." Artemis said as we went over to the archery range. She got a bull's-eye on her first shot. She sent me a condescending grin.  
"Nice shot." I complimented, before grinning as well. I pulled the string on my shadow bow, and an arrow appeared. I released, and destroyed the arrow Artemis shot. She looked at me with wide eyes.  
"Oh, it is ON!" She said with a grin before we each shot again. The end score was a tie.

* * *

 **Ok, the results are in and the winner was Shadows of family. But, I will occasionally update my other stories as well. This story will be my main focus though.**

 **What do think of this chapter? I thought it would be a good idea to have Artemis introduced to Heretic first, before the rest of the team. And I thought the making of her suit would be a good bonding moment, as well as Artemis trying to help Josh with his social issues.**

 **Oh, I'm not sure if anyone got the notification email, but I updated taken Too Soon. Please go check it out!**

 **Also, I know that Artemis' suit existed before this in Canon, but I thought it would be fun to write.**

 **Also, I don't care what you think about Heretic being Leader. It's My story, so fuck you flamers! ^^**

 **I don't mind you saying what you think of the leader swap, but don't tell me to change it. I won't.**


End file.
